1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a garage door status indicating system, and more particularly, to a door alert system that transmits a status signal to a remotely located receiver that indicates when the system or door is in an open or insecure state.
2. The Prior State of the Art
Most homes today include some type of garage area, which is often used for a variety of purposes including as a workspace and as a storage area for the home. In addition to the car, other valuable and sentimental items are often kept in the garage area, such as tools, supplies, parts, seasonal decorations, memorable keepsakes, bicycles, various storage boxes, reusable or recyclable odds and ends, and other bits and pieces. Access to the garage for the car is generally obtained through at least one large garage door, but the garage area may also be accessible to the homeowner through an external door. In addition to these doors, many homes have a door between the garage and the interior of the home. This interior door is not normally as secure or robust as the standard exterior doors to the home and may often be left unlocked. As such, an individual that obtains access to the garage also obtains access to the interior of the home.
Unfortunately, the position of a garage door is often not easily visible from the interior of the home. Often a user will return from an errand and forget to close the door. Or even worse, a user will intentionally leave the garage door while they work outside and forget to close the door when they are finished, retire in the evening leaving the garage door open all night long. Leaving a garage door open creates a crime of opportunity. For example, a passerby walks by and notices the free access to the garage and takes the opportunity to steal the available items. In other words, this is usually not a preplanned situation and is preventable. In many ways, an opportunistic thief using an open garage door also poses a more significant physical threat when the user is home because the thief has access to the residence. Presently, many monitoring systems only provide alerts for abnormal entry into the monitored house. But the majority of garage doors that are left open originate from a normal garage door opening and are left open merely as an oversight of the homeowner. As such, these monitoring systems are ineffective against the mere carelessness of a homeowner and do not prevent opportunistic criminals. What is needed is a door alert system to by notify the homeowner when a door in the garage area is left in an insecure or open state.